Arch support



Jan. 26, 1954 AFFRONTE 2,666,997

ARCH SUPPORT Filed May 24, 1951 INVENTOR JasepkMAfl'ronz BY ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 26, 1954 UNITED STATES .tfATENT may OFFICE ARCH SUPPQRT Joseph M. Afi ronte, Great Neck, N. Y. Am licationv May 2 1951, Serial. No; 228,,(166

is raised substantially, without correspondingly supporting the metatarsal arch, there is likelyto be. considerable foot discomfort, and the, same thing is true the metatarsal arch is given high; support and the long arch is given low support. In my improved adjustable arc -support means, parts are designed so that when the support, for one arch of the foot is raised, the support for the other arch is correspondingly raised.

It is an, object of my invention, therefore, to provide an improved adjustable arch-supporting means for supporting the long arch of the foot and the metatarsal arch.

More specifically, it is an object of" the invention to provide improved arch-supporting means, which may be built into a shoe or separately applied to a finished shoe, and which may be adjusted both longitudinally of the shoe and vertically to support the arches.

It is another object to provide arch-supporting means for the long archof the foot, which will be balanced to give greater comfort to the wearer.

A further object is to provide improved archsupporting-means so arrangedthat when the sup port for one foot arch is changed, the support for the other arch is correspondingly changed.

Other objects and various features of novelty and invention will be hereinafterpointed out or will become apparent to thosesk-illed in the art.

In the drawings which show, for illustrative purposes only, a preferred form of the invention- Fig. I is a perspective view of a shoe'with parts broken away to illustrate features of the i1nproved arch support;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, generally central longhtudinal sectional view of the shoe-shown-in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary, horizontal sectional view substantially in the plane of the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an exploded view of the principal elements of my improved support;

Fig. 5 is. a perspectivaviewof an improved arch support, which may be put into the completed shoe, or which, may be built. into, the shoe. during the course of manufacture.

The shoe illustrated in the drawings is for the left foot, and it will be understood that the arch supports shown in the drawings: are for the leftfoot and that the supports would be made opposite to those shown, for the right foot.

The improved arch support preferably includes 2 what I term. stiff shank stiifener 5, which is preferably a stiff steel; strip, the rightvhand' end of which may be secured; to the heel portion of the shoe, and the forward end portion of which extends downwardly to correspond to the general internal" contour oi the shoe (in the present case. a ladys shoe) Forv a fiattershoe, such as is usually worn by men, the shank sti-iiener 5 would be flatter than; the one illustrated in the drawings...

It is preferable to have the stiff shank stifiiener 5 adjustable longitudinally of the shoe so that it; may be placed in the best position for foot comfort, and it is preferable to secure the rearend ofthe shank stiffener 5 to theshoethe heel portion thereof. A preferred form of ad'- justable attachment of the stiffshank stiffener 5 to the heel-of the shoe may be a telescopicconnection, substantiallyas shown the drawings, orby a screw orthe like passing through the stiffener 5. As shown-,a flat, generally C-shapedsleeve or thimble-member it may besecu-red in a depression 7 in the heel portion of the shoe, as illustrated. The sleeve or thimble 6 may be secured in the shoe, asby means of screws t-8 extending through apertures 9-- in the lugs or cars, which may be for-m d integrally with the sleeve or thimble 6; The sleeve 6 has an aperture l0 therein, and the rear end of the shank stiffener 5, in the form shown, has a plurality of holes H, which, in theform shown, intersect each other, and a screw l2 extends through the hole t0 and through oneof the holes H. and. is threaded in the sleeve 1* or the shank stilrener 55. Thus, when the screw: 12 is removed, the shank stiffener 5' may be moved to adjusted position longitudinally of' the shoe, and when moved; to the desired. position. will be securely held by thescrew [2.

The arch-supporting means, in addition to the. shank stiffener 5, comprisesan arch support plate It. preferably made. of metal, which itself is adjustably supported on the stilt shank stiffener 5.. The arch support plate [3,. injthe form. shown, is interlocked hingedly with. the shank stiifeneri, as by means of notches and ears, and in this. case, the. notches. i:l:, 5:41 are; formed: in thev shank stiffener 5;, and the. lugs or ears 15 to. fit the notches M are. formed; at; the rearend of the; arch suppor late. 13 Thus, wheutheplate i3 is. assembled. with. the. shank, stiffener; 5,. these, parts are. hingedly or adjustably connectedto each other. The-forward end of the plate t3 is preferably guided on the shank stifi ener 5- by means of cars on one member fitting over parts of the other, and in the present case the ears or flanges are turned-down portions on the forward end of the plate t3, so that these flanges 58 embrace the shank stifiener 5 and are guided thereby;

The plate l3 includes a curved, upturned portion I! extending to the right (for a left shoe). This upturned support for the long arch is given a generally relatively smooth curve, so as to fit the instepand give adequate support to the long arch of the foot. As will be Fig. 5, the long-arch supporting portion H extends substantially beyond the shank stiffener 5, and the opposite side of the plate 13 extends at 18 considerably over the opposite side of the shank stiffener 5. Thus, whilethe portion H is designed to support the long arch of the foot, it is to be understood that parts of the foot will bear down on the cantilever portion 18 and thus tend to balance the weight on the long arch of the foot without too much of a twisting strain on any of the parts or on the foot. The forward end of the plate I3 is narrowed down and extended, as indicated at l9, and this front portion of the plate I3 is designed to support the metatarsal arch of the foot. In the form shown, a substantial cushion or pad 20 of leather, rubber, plastic, or any other suitable substance, is secured to the front end IQ of the plate so as to give firm though cushioned support to the metatarsal arch.

All of the arch-supporting portions, including the entire plate I3, and the forward portion of the stiff shank stiffener 5, are preferably enclosed in a suitable jacket or cover, which may be formed of leather, fabric, or any other suitable material, so as to provide a smooth, comfortable surface for the foot. In order to provide for adjustment of the supports for the long arch and for the metatarsal arch, I preferably employ screw means for adjusting the plate 13 toward and from the shank stiffener 5. The screw may be threaded into one of the plates and engage the other. In the form shown, the adjusting screw 22 is threaded into the plate 13 and the point takes against the forward end of the shank stiffener 5, as shown particularly in Fig. 2. The metatarsal pad 28, in the form shown, extends over that portion of the plate l3 in which the screw 22 is located, and the pad 20 is preferably provided with an aperture 23 to accommodate the head of the screw and prevent any contact with the foot. When the parts are all encased in a sheath 2 I, as illustrated in Fig. 5, a hole, covered by the small tab 24, may be formed in the covering to give access for a screw driver for turning the screw 22, and thus adjusting support I! for the long arch of the foot and the portion l9 and pad 20 for the metatarsal arch of the foot.

When it has been determined about where the arch supports should be located in the shoe, the shank stiffener is adjusted as heretofore described, so as to place the arch supports in the proper longitudinal position in the shoe. the parts in the proper longitudinal position, the screw 22 may be turned so as to adjust the plate l3, to give the desired support to the long arch of the foot and to the metatarsal arch.

When my improved arch support is built into a shoe during the course of manufacture, the heel portion is recessed for receiving the thimble l0 and right-hand end of shank stiffener 5, and a usual lining, which might form part or all of the sheath 2|, covers over all of the adjustable and holding parts in the heel. The heel portion of the sheath 2|, as illustrated particularly in Fig. 2, has a flap 25, which may be raised to give access to the screw l2 for adjustment of the longitudinal position of the arch support means. Other portions, including the forward end of clear particularly in the shank stiffener 5 may also be embedded in the sole of the shoe.

When the arch support is sold separately from the shoe, it will be desirable to provide a heel portion or 'cover 26 forthe thimble 6 to cover all parts, such as the screws 8 for attaching the device to a shoe, and screw l2, as well as the shank stiffener 5 and other parts.

Thus, the separate heel cover for the thimble 8 and other parts will provide a comfortable seat for the wearers heel, and the forward end of the shank stiffener 5, as well as the plate 13 and pad 20 preferably will all be covered by the sheath 2i so as to provide a perfectly smooth and finished appearance, which will present no rough or harsh surfaces to the foot of the wearer. When the support is sold separately, the shank stiffener 5 may rest inside the shoe, but it will be preferable to seat the heel parts in a depression formed in the heel portion.

It will be apparent that I have provided an improved arch support, which may be built into or attached to a shoe, and which will permit proper longitudinal positioning of supports for both the long arch and the metatarsal arch of the foot, and will provide means for adjusting simultaneously the heights of the supports for the long arch and the metatarsal arch.

While the invention has been described in considerable detail and a preferred form illustrated, it is to be understood that changes may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a device of the character indicated, a relatively stiff shank stiffener, adjustable means for holding said shank stiffener in various positions of longitudinal adjustment, an arch support plate movably secured to said shank stiffener and movable bodily therewith in longitudinal direction, and means for adjusting the arch support plate up and down on the stiff shank stiffener in all positions of longitudinal adjustment of the latter, said arch support plate being hingedly connected to said stiff shank stiffener, and interengaging means on said plate and stiff shank stiffener to prevent accidental lateral disengagement of said plate from said stiff arch support.

2. In a device of the character indicated, a relatively stifi shank stiffener, an arch support plate movably secured to said shank stiffener and movable bodily therewith in longitudinal direction, and means for adjusting the arch support plate up and down on the stiff shank stiffener in all positions of longitudinal adjustment of the latter, said arch support plate being hingedly connected to said stiff shank stiffener, and interengaging means on said plate and stiff shank stiffener to prevent accidental lateral disengagement of said plate from said stiff arch support, said interengaging means comprising downwardly directed side flanges embracing opposite sides of said shank stiffener to prevent said lateral disengagement of said plate.

I JOSEPH M. AFFRONTE. References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,626,725 Duffield May 3, 1927 1,717,994 Miller June 18, 1929 1,890,384 Howell Dec. 6, 1932 2,018,386 Sherman Oct. 22, 1935 2,083,137 Bastable June 8, 1937 

